JACKSON — Police have identified the 16-year-old killed in a wrong-way crash on U.S. 127 as Rickie Pickens of Jackson.
The crash happened around 7:30 p.m. February 19 near McDevitt Avenue in Summit Township. Investigators say a sedan driven by a 36-year-old Jackson woman was traveling north in the southbound lanes at a high rate of speed when it struck a fully loaded pickup head-on. A third vehicle was sideswiped after the initial impact.
Pickens, a passenger in the sedan, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the sedan and the pickup driver were taken to Henry Ford Jackson Hospital with serious injuries. The sedan’s driver is listed in stable condition. Occupants of the third vehicle were not seriously hurt.
Pickens was a sophomore at Jackson High School and a member of the junior varsity football team.
Police say drugs and alcohol appear to be factors. The investigation continues, and the case will be forwarded to the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office pending state police lab results.